Woman, 71, slashed at Manhattan subway station

This is an archived article and the information in the article may be outdated. Please look at the time stamp on the story to see when it was last updated.

Please enable Javascript to watch this video

SOHO, Manhattan — A 71-year-old woman was slashed by a young man sitting across from her in a subway car as it traveled below Manhattan during the Monday morning rush, police said.

The attack happened about 7:15 a.m. Monday at the Bleecker Street station on Mulberry Street in SoHo, police said.

The victim told officers she was sitting on a southbound 6 train when the passenger sitting on a bench across from her stood up, lunged toward her and slashed the left side of her face with an unknown object, investigators said. The train was approaching the Bleecker Street station when it happened.

Both the victim and her attacker exited the train at that station, police said. The culprit fled on a southbound D train.

The victim suffered a four-inch cut to her face but her injuries are not life-threatening, police said. She was taken to a hospital in unknown condition.

Police said the victim did not know her attacker and the slashing appears to have been unprovoked.

No arrests have been made.

An ambulance transports a woman who was slashed at a Manhattan subway station during the morning rush on Monday, Jan. 25. (PIX11 News)

Police said the attacker was last seen wearing red pants and black sneakers. He's believed to be a black or Hispanic male between 18 and 20 years old with a light complexion.

This was at least the third time this month that a random slashing has happened on city streets.

In Chelsea, a 24-year-old woman was slashed in the face while she walked to work. In the East Village, a slasher knocked a pedestrian to the ground and sliced him with a sharp object while yelling expletives.

In both cases, suspects are in custody. The man arrested in connection with the Chelsea attack may be linked to other assaults, police said.